“This is just how we operate now,” said Alexander Lovett, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Prototyping and Experimentation, during a tech showcase in the Pentagon courtyard. “We don’t need to call it RDER anymore — we live it.”
Originally launched in 2021 to address overlooked but urgent combat needs across commands, RDER sought to fast-track mature technologies through hands-on demonstrations. While Congress was often skeptical — slashing budgets and citing redundancy — Pentagon officials defended the program as a crucial tool for accelerating innovation and adaptation on the battlefield.
Now, those principles are flowing directly into service-led development. Lovett explained that RDER’s legacy is being carried forward through routine operational experimentation, with funding redirected to scale high-impact technologies within military branches.
One signature component of RDER that survives is TREX (Technology Readiness Experimentation), a recurring field event used to test promising systems. Going forward, TREX will zero in on critical needs like autonomous drones and counter-UAS capabilities — areas the Pentagon views as decisive in modern warfare.
At the showcase, 18 autonomous systems were on display, including “Vanilla,” a long-endurance drone by Platform Aerospace. Capable of ISR, SIGINT, and both kinetic and non-kinetic missions, Vanilla graduated from RDER in 2023 and is currently undergoing evaluations with U.S. Central, Naval, and Africa Commands. With help from DOD’s APFIT initiative, the company plans to scale production from one to four systems per month by 2026.
Program manager Jon Rasche said RDER provided not just exposure but real-time feedback that helped shape Vanilla’s design for military use. “It gave us a roadmap to becoming a program of record,” he said.
The event also comes on the heels of a sweeping June 10 memo from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, aiming to revolutionize how the Pentagon fields drones. The memo mandates active-duty drone units within each military branch, grants frontline units direct procurement authority, and establishes autonomous program offices for uncrewed aerial systems.
By the end of 2026, every squad is expected to have low-cost, expendable drones — with a strong emphasis on Indo-Pacific readiness. Hegseth, who visited the showcase in person, emphasized cutting bureaucratic hurdles and fostering open collaboration with industry.
“We’re tearing down the walls that slow innovation,” he said. “The future of drone warfare belongs to those who move fast — and we intend to lead.”
